Baseball Notes: Winning with ‘freebies,’ 10-spots, home cookin’, no-nos and more
Can a team make the playoffs by collecting more walks than hits?
Muhlenberg might.
The Muhls don’t have the stacked lineup that carried them to the Berks League championship last season but they’re still scoring runs – lots of them. On their current four-game winning streak they have averaged 9.2 runs and outscored their opponents 37-3.
The Muhls clubbed their way to the championship last season when their lineup featured six guys batting .350 or better, they hit .329 as a team and averaged 7.6 runs per game.
Four of their top hitters have returned – Kenay Rodriguez (.414 last season), Cam Burr (.400), Gio Cavanna (.367) and Sean Rosenberry (.357) – but none of them have hit as well so far. The lineup’s not as deep as it was and the team has batted just .250 through six games.
They’re still scoring nearly as many runs per game (7.3) as a year ago. They’re doing it with what Muhls coach Brian Kopetsky calls “freebies.”
“The walks, the hit by pitches and the errors,” Kopetsky said. “If you win that battle, and you hit more doubles than your opponents, you should win every game.”
Through six games the Muhls (4-2) have 36 hits and 41 walks (and only 44 strikeouts). That adds up to an impressive .433 team on-base percentage. Rosenberry leads the way at .565. Burr’s at .522. Cavanna’s at .478.
“We’ve been super-patient,” Kopetsky said, “especially Burr, Cavanna, Rosenberry. They just want to get on base.”
Mix in the Muhls’ running game – they’ve stolen 28 bases in 29 attempts – and you can understand why the scoreboard’s been so busy.
“This team does things that give people fits,” Kopetsky said. “Our speed is a factor; that puts so much pressure on people. You want the defense thinking: ‘I’ve gotta hurry, I’ve gotta get rid of the ball.’ That’s to your advantage.”
The Muhls got off to an uncharacteristic 0-2 start – the first time that’s happened since 2012. That was partly due to the competition – defending District 3 Class 5 champ Manheim Central and Gov. Mifflin – partly due to their inexperience. They came into the season needing to replace their No. 1 starter, All-Berks lefty Brad Coley, and half their everyday lineup.
They turned it around quickly by beating Exeter 7-0 in their third game and haven’t lost since.
“We weren’t ready those first couple games,” Kopetsky said. “We’re getting confidence (now), that’s the biggest thing. If we can navigate this thing – and right now we seemed to have figured some things out – this team has potential.”
Home cookin‘
Reading High doesn’t have the best baseball team in the Berks League but the Red Knights can claim the best home field.
The Red Knights will play eight home games at FirstEnergy Stadium this season, beginning with a Berks I game against defending champ Muhlenberg Monday at 7.
The Reading School District and the Reading Fightin Phils have signed a 20-year partnership arrangement that, starting next season, will allow the Red Knights to play all their home games at FirstEnergy Stadium. The school district will pay Reading Baseball, lease holder of the stadium, $150,000 annually for the first 10 years of the arrangement, according to a story in the Reading Eagle.
The Red Knights will have their own private locker room at the stadium.
They’ll play five other Berks teams at FirstEnergy this season: Twin Valley, April 19; Fleetwood, April 21; Conrad Weiser, April 24; Exeter, May 1; and Wilson, May 3.
They have played three home games this season at George Field and have one remaining, April 28 vs. Gov. Mifflin.
FirstEnergy Stadium will also be the site of the Berks League semifinals and championship game, May 13 and 15, respectively.
The Red Knights are just 2-7 but claimed a 4-1 win over Daniel Boone, the Berks II co-leader, on April 3. Next to getting a chance to workout at the stadium this week that has been the highlight of their season.
The Shillington 10-and-over Club
Gov. Mifflin (8-1) has won seven straight games since taking a loss in its second game; few of the wins have been close.
The Mustangs have won by 10 or more runs six straight games, outscoring their opponents 74-5 in that span. They beat Fleetwood 12-0 Wednesday, their third straight shutout. They have put up 42 unanswered runs since allowing some early runs in a 15-3 win at Muhlenberg April 3.
District 3 power ratings don’t take into account margin-of-victory; if they did the Mustangs would be ranked No. 1 in Class 5A. As it is, they’re No. 2 behind Lower Dauphin (7-1).
Four Berks teams are among the top eight in what could be the most competitive of the six classes: Exeter (5-2) is No. 4, Daniel Boone (6-2) is No. 6 and Muhlenberg (4-2) is No. 8.
Berks IV showdown looming
Kutztown took over the No. 1 spot in the District 3 Class 2A power rankings with its 8-7 win at Twin Valley Tuesday.
Brandywine Heights (5-1), which is batting .406 as a team and averaging 8.7 runs, is No. 2 in Class 3A.
Those two teams, tied for first in Berks IV, meet for the first time Monday at Kutztown. The Cougars took both meetings last season, 4-2 and 15-4, en route to the division title.
No-no-no hitters
Berks Catholic senior Daniel Schmehl made the most of his first start this season, throwing a five-inning no-hitter in a 14-0 win over Antietam Wednesday at Stony Creek. He struck out eight and walked four.
It was the third no-hitter of the season in Berks and the second against the Mounts.
Brandywine Heights’ Nate Fronheiser threw a four-inning no-hitter against Antietam in a 15-0 victory April 3 at Mertztown. He struck out five, walked one, and needed just 49 pitches.
Fronheiser’s mound work was overshadowed by teammate Joe Crist, who hit for the cycle in just four innings. He went 4-for-4 with four RBIs and four runs scored.
Schuylkill Valley got a combined five-inning no-hitter from Bodie James and Kelton Faulk in a 10-0 win over Pottstown March 28 at Leesport.